Cannes parties all night - and also shows films

CANNES France (Reuters) - For some people Cannes is a film festival. For others it's a non-stop, two-week long party where the champagne flows freely, until the paying bar kicks in, and the rich and famous mix with the masses, albeit sometimes only briefly.

From one end to the other of the broad La Croisette boulevard which runs along the crescent-shaped sea shore, people party in nightclubs, on hotel rooftops, in restaurants and in huge tent-like beach clubs where bands pound out dance music and the queues for entry get longer as the night goes on.

Other, more exclusive gatherings, take place on the mammoth yachts anchored just offshore on the Mediterranean ripples.

For some, formal evening gowns and tuxedos remain de rigueur, though casual chic is undermining tradition and there are some who look like they are wearing the clothes they slept in.

None of this matters, seemingly to anyone, as long as you are on the guest list, can get inside and can then engage in what everyone else is up to - networking.

"It's for networking, and also one of the really hot girls is a dancer and I know her quite well," said Sean Cronin of London, who used to play the James Bond villains killed off in the first 10 minutes, when asked why he was attending a huge event for the upcoming launch of "The Expendables 3" movie.

"Whenever you come to the Cannes Film Festival you network, you try to meet people," Cronin said, adding that he is working with two major production companies to film period dramas.

The networking was fast and furious all around the Gotha nightclub on Sunday night. Hundreds of guests munched on sausages and quiches and the crush was three deep at the bar for the free Moet champagne until a bit before 1 a.m., when the paying bar kicked in and the crush dissolved.
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